A Thoughtful Gift
by tnWalk7Rach
Summary: Amy's Baby Shower gift, Lisa and Lou think alike, so Jack and Lisa end up working together for a thoughtful gift for Ty and Amy.
1. Planning

Lisa was in France on business but couldn't help thinking about what she and Jack could get Amy and Ty for a baby show gift. The shower she was throwing was a little over a week and a half away. She had been researching strollers that were durable and could handle various terrains. She finally found the perfect one and ordered it. Looking at the "to do" list, she sighed. She had sent the invitations out before leaving for France. Ultimately it seemed as it would be a small intimate family affair by the responses she'd received so far. She had another day in France before heading back to Hudson. Her trips weren't has frequent as they once were, but she did cherish her time there but missed Jack when she was away. She had confided in him when it didn't seem as though Lou would have time to throw Amy the shower, with the amount of time she was spending in New York on the new Maggie's. She pitched the idea to Lou after talking to Jack, Lou thought it was a great idea and assured Lisa that her and Katie would be home that weekend.

The next 24 hours went by at a reasonable pace, finally she was able to text Jack and let him know she was boarding and she'd see him soon. Her phone dinged and it was a message from Jack "ok, see you soon, love you." Lisa smiled to herself and looked at her screensaver, it was a picture of them from their wedding reception, she knew not many people got to see the soft side of her cowboy. Luckily she did and she was glad to be headed home to see him, secretly hoping they'd get some alone time sooner rather than later.

Jack was out checking cattle with Mitch but also kept an eye on the clock knowing Lisa would be home soon. He wanted to be back at the house when she got there.

Mid-Afternoon Lisa drove up the driveway and didn't see much activity, she figured Jack was out checking cattle since she didn't see Buddy in the field. Amy's truck was gone and it didn't appear that Lou was home yet. She wanted to see Jack before heading to Fairfield to check on things there and unpack. She decided to check the barn first before driving up to the ridge to see if that's where Jack and Mitch were at, figuring he wouldn't hear his phone but also wanting to surprise him. He wasn't at the barn so she figured she would head up to the ridge between Big River and Heartland since he mentioned moving cattle there not too long ago. She drove up and sure enough, she spotted them. Parking her car, she waited for him to get closer to the gate. Mitch was first to see a car parked by the gate "Looks like we have a visitor, waiting. Wonder who it is." Jack looked up and instantly recognized Lisa's car "That would be my wife. Either I lost track of time or she's earlier than I thought she'd be. Are you ok to check the rest of the cattle?" Mitch rode on "Yeah, I'll see you later. Hi Lisa." Leaning against the car "Hi Mitch." Jack got off Buddy and led him through the gate closing it before looping Buddy's reins to tie him. He turned to his now smiling wife "Hi, am I glad to see you." Lisa wrapped her arms around him and kissed him "Hi Cowboy." Still holding her "So what do I owe this visit to the field, not that I'm complaining?" Lisa looked up at him "I came straight from the airport, I wanted to see you. I have to go to Fairfield and take care of a couple things and unpack yet." Jack pulled back a little more "I'm glad you did, are you going to be back for supper? Amy and Georgie are out jumping so it might be a little later than normal." Lisa sighed "Not tonight, honey. I have work to get caught up on and I'm tired." Jack trying to hide his disappointment "well ok then, how about lunch tomorrow?" Lisa sensed his disappointment "I'll do my best, can we talk about it in the morning?" She leaned up and kissed him "I've gotta go, I love you." He kissed her and walked her to the car. "I love you too, I'm glad you're home. Please get some rest." She smiled at him as she closed the door "me too, I will." As Lisa drove in the direction of Fairfield, she was slightly disappointed, Jack didn't mention the two of them having dinner together since she'd just got back.

Jack rode Buddy back to the barn, finished his chores. By now he knew it wasn't like Lisa to surprise him while he was out checking cattle. He couldn't help but think something was bothering her or something had happened while she was in France. He sent Amy and Georgie a message to let them know they were on their own for supper, he was going over to Fairfield. He showered and put on one of his nice shirts before grabbing a couple of steaks to make for them and heading out the door. As he drove into Fairfield and up to the barn he noticied the light in Lisa's office was on. He headed to see if she was still working. Harry was walking by also "Hi Jack, if you're looking for Lisa, she said she was heading in for the night. You just missed her." Jack turned in the direction of the house "Thanks, Harry." Jack had a key to the house, but didn't want to startle her either since she wasn't exactly expecting him, he tried the doorbell first.

Lisa was upstairs unpacking and turned the water on for a nice hot bath when the doorbell rang. She wasn't expecting anybody. Quickly she turned off the water and walked downstairs to the door. She was surprised when she saw it was her husband especially since he had a key, "Jack, what are you doing here?" He followed her in and set their supper on the counter "I thought I'd make us supper here tonight. I know you said you were tired." She was standing at the side of the table "I was just unpacking and about to take a bubble bath with a glass of wine" she confessed to him. He walked over "Why don't you go take a bath, I'll bring you a glass of wine and have supper ready when you're done. We can spend the evening here together." She smiled at him "That sounds lovely." He returned her smile "good." Lisa headed back upstairs as Jack got a bottle of wine out and two glasses. He also started to prepare their supper. After he got things going, he went to take her the glass of wine as promised. He entered the bathroom, Lisa had her eyes closed, leaning her head back. Hearing him come in, she opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Lis, here's your wine." He handed her the glass. "Thank you." Jack started to exit but turned back "Lis, is everything ok?" Lisa sat up a little more "Yeah, everything's fine, why?" Jack let out a soft sigh "no reason, I guess I better get back to making supper." With that he headed back to the kitchen. Meanwhile Lisa shook her head and set her glass down. It wasn't long before she came downstairs, glass in hand. She wrapped her arms around him from behind "Thank you." She grabbed the bottle of wine and refilled their glasses. Jack turned to her and set their plates down, he still wasn't sure what was going on and remained silent as they began to eat. Lisa glanced at Jack, finally breaking the silence "Jack, what's eating at you?" Jack set his fork down "Nothing, why?" Lisa gave him the all too knowing look when she knew better "because I know you, something is eating at you." He reaches for her hand "Are you sure you're ok? I know you've had a lot going on with the trip, Amy's shower, helping out while Lou's been gone." Lisa stood up and walked over to him "I'm better than fine now that you're here." She turned his head to her so she could lean down to kiss him "I missed you while I was gone. And honestly I was hoping that we would get some alone time, we haven't had a lot of it lately. So you coming here tonight is perfect." Jack wrapped his arm around her drawing her closer. "I missed you too, when you came out to the field this afternoon. I could tell something was up but weren't saying. I didn't know what it was, but I wanted to make sure you were ok." Lisa smiled at him "I wanted to ask if we could spend time together but then I started to feel guilty because I'd been away and you had so much going on already." Jack stood up taking her hands "I know I'm stubborn and set in my ways a lot of time, but I hope you know that I always look forward to us spending time together." He pulled her in for a hug. Lisa would never get tired of his hugs, she always felt secure and loved when he held her in his arms. "Since you came here and made supper, I'll get the kitchen cleaned up and dishes done." Jack released her "I'll help you so we can spend some more time together. There's not much to clean up."

Soon they had the dishes cleaned up and Lisa led him to the couch. He sat down and pulled her to sit next to him. She curled up against him. "Hey, did our shower gift for Amy come while I was gone?" He glanced down at her "Not that I know of…what did you decide on?" She glanced up at him "remember we talked about a stroller? I found one and ordered it. We may have to get it from the post office if it's not delivered to the house." Jack shook his head, knowing his wife it was some top of the line, fancy stroller. "Ok. So tell me about your trip?" "Well business is picking up again, we've got a couple of young racehorses that seem to be coming along. I'm hopeful that they can go onto win a few races. Fairfield needs the publicity, especially after Dan's latest fiasco I'm still trying to undo that damage." Jack could feel her tense up mentioning Dan's name, he knew their partnership wasn't always on the best of terms. "Was he over there too?" Lisa leaned back some and looked at Jack. "No, I don't know where he was when he called last week, honestly I don't care either." Jack mumbled something she couldn't understand which prompted her to continue "Jack, you know that our partnership over there is strictly business. I'm just glad that the horses that are doing best in the races are solely Fairfield. It'll give him something to grumble about." Jack reached for her hand "I know, I just don't like the way he seems to always complicate things for you. I'm glad though that you will be able to gloat when you beat his horses though." Lisa squeezed his hand "I know, but you know what every time I think about the mess that he makes of things, reminds me how glad I am that he is my Ex and that I am married to you." She smiled and leaned back against him trying to hide the yawn that's about to escape. Jack caught it though "Lis, you need to get some sleep." Lisa set her glass on the table and turned to him, "Will you stay tonight or are you going home?" Jack set his glass next to hers "I'll stay." Lisa's face lit up because she knew how much he hated to spend the night away from his bed and always complained about the excess pillows. "Really, are you sure?" Jack pushed off the couch and stood up pulling her up with him "Yes, I am." Lisa took their glasses to the kitchen before they went upstairs. They got ready for bed, Jack was waiting for her when she got in bed next to him. She leaned over and kissed him. "I love you." Jack pulled her closer to him "Love you." He leaned down and kissed her again, soon they were ending their evening on a good note.

The next morning Lisa woke up beside Jack, head resting on his shoulder. She sleepily looked up at him "hmm, morning" He smiled and leaned down for his head to meet hers "Morning." Lisa looked at him "Did you get any sleep last night?" Jack wrapped his arm around her "I did, you were next to me. It may not be as good as my bed at Heartland but it's not as bad as it used to be." He confessed making Lisa smile "Good, last night was what I needed." She sat up against the headboard with him and wrapped her arms around his waist with her head on shoulder. Jack kissed the top of her head "Lis, are you sure there's nothing else you need to tell me?" Lisa raised her head back to look at him, "Jack, honestly there isn't, we've both been really busy and just haven't had that much time together. I need us to have nights like last night, just the two of us. You know I don't mind us helping out with the girls and Amy since Ty's out of town but I need our talks and time too." Jack leaned down to whisper in her ear "I love you, Lis." She leaned up to kiss him "I love you." They laid together wrapped in each other's arms for a little longer before getting up. Jack was getting ready to leave, Lisa walked to the door with him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing his head closer "I love you. How about I come and make us some lunch?" Jack holding her "I love you, and I'll see you for lunch." They kissed goodbye and he headed to Heartland while Lisa went to her office to get work done.


	2. Chapter 2

Jack was out riding the fences mid-morning, he glanced at the was almost lunchtime and he knew Lisa would be home soon. He rode Buddy to the barn to untack him and brush him before turning him out in the field. Jack was closing the gate as Lisa drove in. She got out and started to get the groceries she had stopped for from the back of the car. Jack walked over to help her "Here let me help you." Lisa handed him a couple bags and closed the back of the car, walking up to the house with Jack. They set the groceries on the table. Lisa turned to Jack and walked into his arms, he leaned down and kissed her "Hi." She rested her head against his chest for a minute before starting on their lunch. He got them a couple cups of coffee. "Are you done working for the day?" He asked as he sat down at the table. She glanced over from cutting the vegetables for their salad "I have to do a couple things for the shower. What are your plans?" He took a sip of coffee "Well I have to do a couple things outside, but was thinking if you were done, it might be nice for us to take a ride later?" Lisa sat their lunch down and sat across from him "That sounds lovely, I shouldn't be too long." Amy came in and got a glass of water "Hi Grandpa, Lisa." "Hi honey, you want some lunch?" Amy put the pitcher back in the fridge "No thanks, Lisa. I have another client coming soon, maybe this one will actually leave their horse." Jack glanced at Lisa "What do you mean?" Amy leaned against the counter "The last one didn't believe I could help their horse because I'm pregnant. I can still work with horses, I don't have to ride to help." He looked at his granddaughter "Of course you can. Everything's going to work out." Amy set her glass in the sink "Sure." She walked out the door. Jack leaned back in his seat and Lisa looked at him. "I think she's having a hard time between the clients and Ty being gone. As she gets further along, it's getting harder for him to be away. I don't know how much planning she's done since Lou's been gone too." Jack sighed "I've noticed it too. Tim has been driving her nuts too, reading all the pregnancy books." Lisa laughed "I've caught that. Poor thing, Ty will be home sooner rather than later." They finished lunch and Jack went to tend to the outside chores. Lisa was in the house on her laptop, making the last minute preparations for the shower.

Georgie came in from school "Hi Lisa, can you drive me to Maggies for my shift? Jack's working on his truck, I didn't see Amy's truck and moms car is at the airport." Lisa looked up from her laptop "Hi, sure. I'll meet you at the car in a few minutes."

Georgie went up to change. Lisa closed her laptop and put it back in the bedroom. She grabbed her keys and purse and headed out to the yard where Jack was indeed working on the truck. He saw her coming. "Where are you off too? I thought we were going to go for a ride this afternoon?" Approaching him "I'm going to run Georgie to Maggies for her shift, I'll be back and we can go for that ride." Jack frowned "Ok, I'll be ready by the time you're back." Lisa smiled and kissed him "perfect, I won't be too long." As she walked over to her car, Georgie was coming down the steps. Lisa drove Georgie to Maggies and was soon back at Heartland. She walked out to the barn a few minutes later. Jack was tacking up Buddy and Cinders when she walked in the barn. Jack saw her and finished tightening the saddle on Buddy. "Almost ready." Lisa grabbed Cinders bridle and put it on him as Jack did the same with Buddy. They soon mounted up and headed down the trail both silent just taking in nature around them. Lisa stopped on top of the hill, Jack pulled up beside her. Lisa looked over at him, "This is one of my favorite spots. We need to do this more often." Jack reached for her hand "Mine too and yes we do." He leaned over to kiss her. "You know, I was thinking you should leave Cinders over here or we can find you a trail horse for her so you don't have to keep bringing him back and forth from Fairfield when you want to ride." Lisa pondered that thought for a moment "I guess you are right, it is kinda silly to keep bringing him back and forth. I don't know about leaving him here though, he's not exactly the calmest when it comes to the cattle." Jack started to ride again "So why don't we see if we can find a better trail horse that isn't so flighty around the cattle and then you can leave Cinders at Fairfield for when we ride over there." Jack got an "Ok" from Lisa and they continued their ride in silence a little while longer. While riding Jack looked over at Lisa, taking in how peaceful and beautiful she looked. She noticed he was watching her "What?" He gave her the half crooked smile "Nothing, just admiring my beautiful wife." Lisa flashed him a smile and he saw the glimmer in her eyes, "You're too kind." Jack returned her smile "No I'm right." They returned to the barn a little while later. Lisa helped finish the evening chores before they headed to the house to prepare supper. Tim and Amy joining them that evening since everybody else was gone.

The next few days went by, Lou and Katie came home a couple days prior to the shower. Lisa headed to Heartland after finishing with a couple of clients, she walked in the door. Katie was the first to see her come in and came running "Lisa!" Lisa returned the hug "Katie, your GG and I have missed you." Katie released her "Can we have another sleepover?" Lisa walked into the kitchen where Lou and Jack were. "I think we can, we'll ask your mom." "OK" and Katie was off to play. Lou gave Lisa a hug "She's been asking for that sleepover all week when I told her we were coming home. She's missed you guys." Lisa returned the hug and walked over by Jack "I think we can manage a sleepover, is Katie going back with you the next time you go back to New York?" Lou took a seat at the table "I don't know yet, Peter is wanting her to come visit in Vancouver. We have to work out the details." Katie called for Lou so she got up and went to tend to Katie. Lisa turned to Jack "Hi" Jack leaned down to kiss her before they were interrupted "Hi, I'm glad you're here." She smiled :"Me too, what can I do to help?" Jack pulled out the chair "You can keep me company, I have it almost done." Amy walked into the kitchen "Hi Grandpa, Lisa." Lisa looked at Amy, she could tell she was exhausted. "Amy, are you ok? You look exhausted." Jack looked up from the pot he was stirring "Is the napping not going so well?" Amy looked at them both "No, it's not. I can't get this napping thing down. I'm so used to being active but I'm tired ...and dad's driving me nuts reading all of the pregnancy books." Lisa reached out to touch Amy's arm "Why don't you go up to the loft, I'll bring you some supper when it's ready. You can try to get some rest before Ty calls tonight." Amy started to get up. "Ok, thanks Lisa." Jack and Lisa watched her walk out of the house and back towards the loft. Lisa started to set the table while Jack finished cooking supper. When it was done, Lisa took a plate up to Amy as Jack gathered Lou and Katie. Lisa walked up the steps "Amy, supper has arrived." She didn't get an answer, she saw Amy was asleep on the couch so she carefully put it in the fridge and left her a note. Lisa got back to the house and joined the rest of the family for supper.

The next day, Lisa got the mail on her way in and saw the notice that the package had arrived and needed to be picked up from the Post Office. Jack came in as she was getting some juice for Katie. Lisa saw him "Oh Hey, are you going to town this afternoon?" Jack hung his hat up for a minute "Yeah, meeting Stumpy for coffee and getting the supply order from Maggies, why?" Lisa handed him the piece of paper "Can you pick this up, while you're in town?" Jack looked at the paper before looking at his wife. Lisa knew where it was headed by the look on his face "I know, I know but I promise it's worth it, I did all of my research. They are going to love it." Jack shook his head, he knew Lisa and she'd make sure they got Amy a durable and good stroller as their gift. "Ok, I'll pick it up." Jack put his hat back on and was out the door, putting the order pickup paper in his pocket.

Jack returned a few hours later and brought the box into the kitchen. Lisa was walking back into the kitchen when he was coming in. "Thank you for picking this up." She cut the box open and got the manual out. She read the directions "It looks like it needs some assembly, do you think you can do it?" Jack looked at her and took the directions and soon enlisted Mitch's help to get it assembled. An hour later, they had it together. Lisa came into the living room where they were, "Thank you both, this is perfect." Mitch left and Jack looked at Lisa "The answer of how many grown men does it take to assemble a stroller, is two." Lisa chuckled at his comment. "I'm grateful for you doing it." She kissed him and pushed the stroller into Jack's room out of sight as it would soon be dinner time.


	3. The Shower

The next day Lisa and Jack were in the living room, Lou came in and was talking about the shower gift. They agreed to show each other what they both had gotten Amy, the shower was the following day. Lisa went to get the stroller and Lou went to get her gift, re-entering the living room with the same stroller. Jack looked between his wife and granddaughter. "I'm leaving you two to work this out." He exited the house to go to the barn. Lou looked at Lisa "What the hell is that?" Lisa let out a slight giggle "Looks like we had the same idea. I can't take mine back, Jack and Mitch spent over an hour putting it together yesterday." Lou looked at her "Well I can't take mine back either. What are we going to do? Amy doesn't need two strollers." After a minute of silence, Lisa looked at Lou "Great minds think alike, huh. What a mess." She paused again "Of course you're her sister, you'll give her yours. I'll figure something else out." Lou let out a sigh "Thank you, I mean Lisa are you sure?" Lisa started to head back to the bedroom "Yes of course, Jack's going to kill me. I'll figure something out." Lou went in the opposite direction "Thank you!" Lisa remained in the bedroom for a while, she was thinking about what had transpired and also how she was going to tell Jack that they ended up having to return the stroller and figure something else out for Amy.

Jack walked back in the house and didn't see Lisa or Lou, he noticed that their bedroom door was half closed. He opened it slightly and saw Lisa standing at the window, he walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Hey, you ok?" Lisa remained looking out the window, wiping a stray tear that had escaped "Hey, yeah I'm fine. Umm, so Lou's going to give Amy the stroller." Jack turned Lisa towards him, he wiped a tear that was escaping "That's ok. We will figure something else out. I know you wanted it to be perfect for Amy." Lisa looked up at Jack "Yeah, but Lou's her sister and she should be the one to give it to her. I'll figure something else out. I'm sorry you spent all that time assembling it though." Jack led her to sit on the bed, "Lisa, you don't have to apologize. It's fine, now what else is bothering you?" Lisa sniffled "Nothing." Jack knew he could only press Lisa so far before she would shut down. He reached for her hand, "Come on, let's go for a walk." Lisa's phone dinged. She looked down and read the message "Umm, I can't, there's a potential client wanting to come look at a horse this afternoon. I gotta go." She stood up and started towards the door. Jack grabbed her hand stopping her from exiting the room "Lis, it's going to be ok. I love you and I appreciate what you are doing for Amy." He pulled her into his arms, he could feel the tension in her body start to relax as she put her head against his chest. "I love you, I gotta go. I'll call you later." Jack kissed her before she left. He sighed as he watched her leave. Jack walked out of his room and saw Lou on her laptop in the kitchen "Hey Grandpa." He got a cup of coffee and sat down "Lou, what's keeping you busy?" Lou stopped typing "Just some business for Maggies in New York, where's Lisa?" Jack took a sip of coffee "Oh she had to go to Fairfield to meet a client." Lou looked at her grandpa, "Did she tell you about the stroller incident?" Jack shook his head yes "Yeah, she told me. We can figure something out." Lou sensed his frustration "I know Lisa and I don't always see eye to eye on things, but do you think she's ok with me giving Amy the stroller?" Jack looked at his granddaughter, he knew that his wife and granddaughter didn't always get along but in reality they both were so strong willed and he also knew that Lou always got her way no matter what. "We didn't talk too much about that. If Lisa said for you to give it to Amy, then that's what she's decided. It'll all work out." With that Jack got up and walked out to the barn. Jack sat down in the office. His thoughts taking him back to when Lou was having Katie and convinced him to turn Marions room into the nursery and he sat down in the chair thinking back to when Lyndy had Marion. He instantly had an idea, that Amy needed a rocking chair to rock the baby back to sleep, especially with limited space in the loft. He finished feeding the horses and then headed to town to follow through with his idea. Jack made a trip to the lumber store and found the plans for the perfect rocking chair that they could make for Amy. It was something that would not only allow Lisa and him to spend time together, but it would be the perfect gift. He gathered the supplies he needed and headed back to Heartland, he stored the items he had gathered in the Quonset Hut where he did his other projects. He sent Lisa a text and asked her if she was coming back to the ranch for supper. He knew that she was upset when she left and hopes that she would return and hopefully spend the night since Amy's shower was the next day. His phone dinged and it was Lisa, telling him not to wait for her but she'd see him later. He responded and finished the nightly chores. Several hours later, he was in the living room when he heard the door open, he got up out of his chair and headed towards the kitchen. He met Lisa in the hallway, she saw him and gave him half a smile "Hi." He pulled her in an embrace "Hi, I'm glad you're here. How did it go with the client?" Still wrapped in his arms "Fine, he's interested in a couple younger horses." She pulled back, Jack saw the disappointment in her face. "Did you eat supper?" Lisa shook her head "No, but I'm not hungry." Jack didn't care for that answer but wanted to show her his idea for their gift that he came up with so he didn't press the issue. Instead he took her hand, "Come on, I want to show you something." Following her husband out the door, him leading her towards the Quonsent Hut, she had no idea what he was up to "Jack, where are we going?" Jack kept walking "You'll see." He opened up the door and she saw a bunch of lumber and tools "What is all of this?" Jack walked to where the plans and directions for the rocking chair were and handed it to her "This is what I think you and I should make and give to Amy for her shower gift." Lisa looked at Jack "Really?" Jack wasn't sure if she liked the idea so he continued on "When Lyndy had Marion, she had a chair that she would sit in and get her to go to sleep, I was thinking with the limited space that they have in the loft. This is the perfect thing for Amy to rock the baby to sleep and it would be something that you and I could do together. We can spend time together and it's something that I think Amy will love, coming from us. So what do you think?" Lisa smiled at Jack and wrapped her arms around his neck "I think you it's a really great idea, you are a very thoughtful man, Jack Bartlett." She leaned up and kissed him "I mean it, I really like the idea of us doing it together too." Jack held her in his arms "I do too, I know you don't always feel like you fit in and I'm sorry for that, but we all really don't know what we would do without you." Lisa kissed him again "I love you and your family, this family means a lot to me." Jack corrected her "It's our family Lis, you've been a part of it long before we got married. Come on, let's go back to the house and settle in front of the fire." They got back to the house "I'll get us some wine, you go and settle into the couch." Lisa headed for the couch, Jack following a few minutes later. He saw Lisa staring into the fire "here you go." He handed her a glass of wine, sat down on the couch and pulled her closer wrapping his arms around her and kissing the side of her head. Lisa glanced up at him "Thank you." She leaned up and kissed him. They sat cuddled together on the couch for a little while, Lisa started to doze off. Jack took her glass "Come on Lis, let's get some sleep." He put their glasses in the kitchen and retired to their room. Lisa was already in bed, she was checking her phone when he walked in "Everything ok?" Lisa put her phone on the side table "yeah, just checking to see if that client emailed me." Jack got into bed and turned off the side lamp. He pulled her closer to him with her head resting on his shoulder. "Love you, Lis." Lisa turned towards him more "love you Jack." She kissed him and settled back down, her mind not fully settled.

The next morning Jack woke up, Lisa was still asleep. He could see the stress even as she slept. He kissed the top of her head, thinking about the last few weeks. Lisa was working so hard between Fairfield, organizing Amy's shower and helping with the girls while Lou has been in New York for Maggie's, it left little time for anything else. Lisa started to wake up, she moved back and looked at Jack. He was staring ahead. He felt her move and looked down "morning" she stretched and rolled over more towards him "morning." She kissed him before settling back next to him "what's wrong? You looked like you were a million miles away." They sat up against the pillows "Thinking about how nice it was to have you next to me but also that you've been working so much lately. Just don't want you to overwork yourself." Lisa took his hand "things have been busy between Fairfield, Amy's shower and helping with the girls but I'm ok. It's nothing that I can't handle." Jack squeezes her hand "I know it's nothing you can't handle but I can't help but worry about you. We are married now and I want us to be able to do things and enjoy time together." She turned to face him "I love your concern and worry but I promise to make time for us. Besides we will be spending time together with Amy's gift. And the shower is today so that's one less thing I will have on my to do list." She leaned over and drew him in for a kiss. "I guess we should get moving, the shower is soon and I have to finish preparing. Lou has agreed to keep Amy away until it's time. I still suspect Amy knows that I have this planned today." Jack was getting dressed "she hadn't mentioned anything to me but she's been pretty preoccupied lately too." They went into the kitchen and Jack started the coffee. Lisa had to run to town to pick up the deserts she ordered for the shower.

Georgie and Katie helped Lisa get the table and decorations up before Lou brought Amy in. It was just a small gathering, some friends had dropped off some gifts even though they couldn't attend. The girls yelled Surprise as Amy got to the living room. Amy hugged them "A shower, you guy" Lisa hugged her "I have a feeling you knew" Amy just smiled at her. They agreed to eat before gifts. As Amy was opening gifts after Lou gave her the stroller, Jack came in "you have room for one more?" Amy looked at her grandpa "sure" Jack sat on the edge of the chair and handed her a box "this is from Lisa and I." Amy opened the box and saw the picture of the rocking chair. Jack pointed to the picture "this is the chair that Lisa and I are making for you." Amy hugged Jack "it's perfect, thank you guys so much." Lisa smiled at Jack as he hugged Amy, she knew how close they were and how much it meant to them both. Jack exited the party and went back out to the barn, where he started to work on the rocking chair. The shower concluded and Lou helped Amy take everything up to the Loft. Lisa got everything cleaned up and took a couple cups of coffee out to the barn to find her husband. She knew he was out working on a project. She found him in the Quonset Hut. "Hey, what are you working on?" handing him a cup of coffee. He put the sander down "I figured I'd start to get the pieces started for the chair." Lisa leaned against the workbench and he joined her "Did Amy enjoy her shower?"

"Yeah, Lou helped her take everything to the loft. I think Lou is taking the girls out this afternoon. Amy mentioned Ty calling later." Jack set his glass down and took hers also setting it next to his, turning to her to draw her in for a hug. "So that means we have the afternoon for us. How about we work on our project and then go out for dinner." Lisa leaned her head against his chest, enjoying the comfort of his arms "Sounds good." When they parted they started again on the chair. After working a little while, they decided to take a break and go for supper. As they were walking back to the house Jack asked Lisa if she was staying again or if she was going back to Fairfield. "I was going to stay at Fairfield tonight, I need to get some paperwork ready and take care of a few things. There's a couple horses in Florida I'm interested in, I was thinking about going to take a look at them." Jack knew she was working on a business deal, he wasn't thrilled with the idea of her going on another trip so soon after she just got back from France but choose not to say anything. Her trips weren't quite as frequent as they once were before they got married, but she was still gone more than he liked. "How long are you going to be gone?" Lisa detected a bit of frustration at the mention of her traveling so soon "just a few days, I wish you'd come with me. I'd love your opinion" jack sighed "Lis, Lou is going back to New York and with Ty being gone, I don't see how I'd be able to leave." They continued the conversation as they headed to town for supper. "I know it's a lot to ask for you to leave and you don't like to travel but it's just a few days. Surely Mitch and Tim can handle the cattle and Amy and Georgie would be alright. Lou is taking Katie to Vancouver to Peters." Jack knew that Lisa was hinting that they both need a break and that some alone time would do them both some good. "Lis, let's table the travel talk, I'll see what I can do ok?" Lisa just looked out the window as they headed towards town. Jack knew she wasn't thrilled with that response but he just didn't know if it was a good idea to leave right now. He headed towards one of Lisa's favorite restaurants over going to Maggie's as they usually did. He stopped the car and opened the door. Jack reaches for her hand to help her out and closed the door behind her, before they walked in he turned her to look at him, "hey, I know you're disappointed. I'll talk to the girls and Mitch to see if they can handle things ok?" Lisa gave him a half smile "ok." They walked in and had a nice supper with light conversation, some tension still evident.

On the way back to Heartland, Jack pulled her in the middle seat of the truck and wrapped his arm around her as they drove towards home. "Are you sure I can't convince you to stay tonight? It's been a long day and it is the weekend. You can spend some time with the family before you leave and also some time with Lou and Katie too." After a moment of silence, "No, I'm just going to head home, I'm tired and I can get up and do some work and come over tomorrow. They're not leaving tomorrow anyway." Jack knew he didn't need to press her "ok, maybe tomorrow we can work on the chair for Amy. The baby will be here before too long." Lisa gave him a tired smile "sure." They arrived back at Heartland and Lisa walked to her car. Before she could get in Jack wrapped his arms around her "I love you." He pulled back and kissed her "I wish you'd stay." Lisa gave him another kiss "I love you. I'll see you tomorrow."

Jack went into the house as she headed to Fairfield. He sat in his chair wondering thinking about everything that was coming up and if it was even possible to think about leaving even if it was a few days.


	4. Time Together

The next morning, Jack was in the kitchen when Lou and Katie came in "Mommy, when do I get to have a sleepover with Lisa?" Lou looked at her daughter and grandpa "I'll talk to Lisa, honey I don't know if it'll be this trip, you're going to your dads this coming week. Grandpa, where is Lisa?" Jack poured himself a cup of coffee "She's at Fairfield. I think she'll be over later." Lou got a cup of coffee and placed a muffin on Katie's plate "Everything ok with you two?" Jack patted her on the shoulder "Everything's fine. I better get outside." Lou looked at her grandpa and knew from the tone of the everything's fine line that it probably wasn't but he wasn't about to discuss it. By early afternoon, Jack still hadn't heard from Lisa and she wasn't at Heartland.

Meanwhile at Fairfield, Lisa sat in her office looking at her calendar and working on paperwork for the upcoming sale and also reviewing the horses she wanted to see in Florida. She had just gotten back from France and this trip so soon had her conflicting with her own emotions about leaving Jack again. He had a lot on his plate and understood deep down why he wasn't sure if he could go. Family means everything to him and that's one of the things that made her fall in love with him all those years ago. After a little while of sitting there pondering over what she should do, she looked at the clock. It was later than she realized, checking her phone she didn't have any missed texts or calls. She closed her office and headed to Heartland.

Lisa drove up the driveway and saw her husband sitting on the porch just as he always does, coffee cup in hand. He walked down the steps as she was exiting the car. "Hi" She smiled "Hi, sorry I lost track of time" He pulled her in for a hug "it's ok, Everything ok at Fairfield?" They started to walk up to the porch "yeah, just completing some paperwork and looking at the info on a couple of horses that I received." They sat down on the bench. After a few minutes of silence, she reached for his hand. "So do you want to work on our project." Jack looked at her "Sure, I think we have some time before supper. I think Amy is helping Georgie with her jumping." They got up and headed towards the Quonsent Hut. Jack handed her a pair of safety glasses "here put these on, we need to sand some of the spindles down." Lisa put her glasses on as Jack turned the sander on. She watched him for a minute. "Do you want me to do that?" Jack turned it off for a minute to show her what he had done "you'll need to do it like this." She reaches for the sander "I think I can manage" with a slight chuckle. Jack watched her start and noticed she wasn't doing it quite like he had. He walked up behind her "can I show you" he started to guide her hands in the correct pattern to be consistent. Lisa looked up at him lovingly "I see we've made sanding wood into a team sport too" she chuckled. "I guess we have, we make a pretty good team." She glanced back at him as he started to step away "that we do." Jack stepped back and started to cut some more wood to make the seat. After a while Lisa had the spindles sanded down and Jack had the rest of the pieces cut out. Lisa took the safety glasses off and watched him for a minute. He was so at ease and relaxed working on the chair. He noticed she was staring "what?" She walked up and wrapped her arms around his arm and put her chin on his arm "nothing, just admiring my handsome husband. You are so relaxed." Jack turned slightly and took the safety glasses off "I think it's the company I'm keeping." He smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her. Lisa smiled and pulled back "so I did some thinking today and I'm not going to make that trip." Jack stopped and focused his attention solely on her "Lis, you know I support you going, why the change?" She crossed her arms "because it's too close to Amy's due date and there's just too much work between here and Fairfield. You've got so much going on and I really don't want to be gone from you even if it's a few days." Jack walked over and led her to sit down for a minute, "Lisa, If you want and need to go, then I support you. The work here, we are managing. Amy has a few weeks yet, so don't worry about that and Ty will be coming home soon. As far as us, I told you I would support your Trips and it's your business. I would never ask you to give that up. We always manage and I'm always going to be here." Lisa's heart was full, she knew that he meant every word. "I know Jack, we do but I cherish our time together. And I worry about you, especially with all that's going on. Besides I was considering having a vet check the horses out, I've seen the videos and studied the paperwork they sent. I think I could always try to make the deal without going in person." Jack took her hands in his "Lisa, I want you to make the decision that's best for you and your business. I would love it if you'd stay here but you know I won't object if you feel like you should go." Lisa gave him a half smile "I know and I love you for that. I've made my decision though, I'd rather stay here and besides we have a rocking chair to finish for our great grandchild." Jack smiled back "yes we do. But I think we can put the project on hold for this evening." He stood and they walked hand in hand back to the house.

They made some leftovers for supper and a salad, sitting at the table in the kitchen just the two of them. As Lisa sat down, Jack decided to just ask her about the stroller situation "Lis, I wanted to ask, what happened between you and Lou with the stroller?" Lisa stirred her food around on the plate "Lou is Amy's sister, she should've been the one to give her the stroller. It was clear that she didn't really want to back down on her gift, so I told her since she was her sister, it was right for her to give it to her. It's done now." She stated it matter of factly, but there was an underlying tone that made Jack cringe inside. "Jack reached for her hand "You're family though too Lisa. I know you and Lou have had your share of disagreements but I do wish that she would hold you at the same regard I do. I'm sorry." Lisa looked at him and stood up walking around to face him "You don't have to be sorry, yes Lou and I don't always see eye to eye but what family always agrees with one another. I love you and this family. I'm serious though when I said it was fine, besides it has given us a chance to do something together and make something special for Amy." Her smile told him that she was okay and she did mean it, no hiding her feelings. He pulled her in for a hug. "Oh by the way, your goddaughter was asking about her sleepover this morning." Lisa sat back down to finish her supper "Oh yeah, I know she asked about that. Lou said she was going to Peter's though this week, so it'll have to be when they get back." Jack shook his head "you spoil her with those sleepovers." Lisa smiled and said "she's my goddaughter, besides if you would spend more time over at my place, I'd spoil you more too" in a flirty tone. Jack smiled "oh yeah, I may take you up on that Mrs. Stillman." He leaned across the table to kiss her.

The next couple of weeks went by relatively quick with Jack and Lisa working on the Rocking Chair each day, it was closer to being done each day. Jack was home one afternoon when Amy called him and needed him to go with her to the Hospital. She had gotten a call from Bob and needed to meet them at the hospital because Ty was sick. Jack called Lisa to let her know what was going on and that he would call her with an update when he had one. Lou was on a flight back also. Jack and Amy arrived at the hospital, the drs were working on Ty. Bob explained how sick he was but he was determined to get back for Amy and the baby. All they could do is wait until the Dr had some news for them.


	5. Finishing Touches

Jack remained at the hospital with Amy. He stepped out of the waiting room and called Lisa back to let her know they were still waiting on the doctor to provide an update. Lisa walked into their room out of earshot from Katie and Georgie "How's Amy doing?" Jack looked back at his granddaughter "She's hanging in there, she's as anxious as us if not more to hear about Ty and see him." Lisa signed "I worry about her and the baby. Do you want me to bring you guys anything?" Jack shook his head and saw the dr coming back "no Lis, the drs coming. I'll call you back." He hung up and went back to Amy.

The next several hours the whole family anxiously awaited news on Ty, at the ranch and the hospital. Finally when Amy was able to see Ty, she wouldn't be persuaded to go home. Jack didn't want to leave but she insisted he go home, she was staying by Tys side "go home grandpa, I'll be right here." Jack hugged Amy "I'll bring you a bag Lisa packed tomorrow and some breakfast. If you need us, call. I love you." With that he left. Jack was weary and tired from the days events. The house was dark when he got home, he quietly tiptoed through the house and to his room. Lisa was in bed already, he couldn't tell if she was fully asleep. He carefully got in bed and was about to lean over to kiss her when she turned over and circled her arms around him "How was Ty?" Jack held her "He's got an infection, he isn't contagious so Amy was able to stay with him. I figured I'd come on home, she wasn't going to leave him." He leaned down and kissed her. Lisa could tell he was worried "Tys going to be ok, how are you holding up?" Jack softly grunted "I'm fine." Lisa pulled back a little "I know you Jack, you're worried and won't admit it. It's ok to admit it." Jack frowned "I am but adding to Amy's stress isn't something she needs right now. Hopefully his condition improves and he can help her finish the Nursery. The baby's going to be here soon. Come on, let's try to get some sleep." Lisa kissed him "ok, love you." Jack pulled her close "love you, Lis."

The next morning, Jack had coffee brewing as Lisa packed some breakfast for Amy. Jack finished his coffee and put the mug in the sink "I'll be back in a little while." Lisa kissed him goodbye "I have to go to Fairfield for a little while, Lou will be here with the girls and Peters coming today according to the schedule." Jack grabbed his hat "I'll see you later" Lisa wiped the counter off "okay." Shortly after Lisa headed to Fairfield.

The day passed and Jack spent the afternoon at the hospital with Amy, making sure she took breaks and stretched her legs while he sat with Ty. While he was sitting with him, the monitors alarmed, causing the medical team to rush in and push Jack out of the room. Amy was coming back, Jack had her sit on the stool to wait for his doctor to come out. Unfortunately the news wasn't good. Jack called Lisa and let her know, the whole family coming down to wait with Amy. When they arrived Jack hugged Lisa "I'm glad you're here." Lisa held him "I wouldn't be anywhere else." They sat down. It was a long night for the whole family, everyone slightly dozing for intermittent periods of time. Jack was resting against Lisa when Amy came out. She got up in a rush, startling Jack. "what is it honey?" Amy has tears in her eyes, "he's going to be okay." The good news was a relief to everyone. Amy was staying the night with Ty again. After a while the family dispersed and went home for the night.

The next morning, Jack was sitting at the kitchen table when Lisa came in. "Morning." Jack didn't respond, she could tell he was a million miles away. She got a cup of coffee and touched his shoulder, startling him "sorry didn't mean to startle you. What's on your mind?" She sat down across from him. Jack looked at her "just thinking about the last few months. You know I told Ty that he should go to Mongolia because if he didn't, he'd have to live with the regret of not going and the experience. Now I wish I wouldn't have given him that advice." Lisa reached for his hand "Jack, nobody could have predicted that he would've gotten sick like this. You also can't live with regret. There's always going to be things we wish we did or didn't do." Jack gave her a half smile "I guess you're right." Lisa stood up and kissed his cheek "of course I am. What do you have planned for today?" Jack refilled his cup. "Need to make a supply run and fix a gate. You?"

"Lou asked me to watch Katie for a couple hours while she goes to Maggie's." She said as she sat back down. He looked at her "You two could ride into town with me and once Lou gets back we can finish our project." Lisa smiled "I...I promised Katie we could go to Fairfield to look at some of my horses. But when you and Lou both get back, yes we do need to finish our project. Amy could have the baby any day now and it needs to get finished." Jack stood up and kissed her "alright then, I'll see you later."

Jack went into town and came back. He finished fixing the gate on the back pasture by the time Lisa returned from Fairfield and Lou was home.

Lisa walked out to the barn, where he was unloading the last of the fencing supplies he used to fix the gate "hey you." Jack picked up the bucket he had his tools in "Hi. Are you ready to work?" Lisa stopped next to the truck "I am." They headed to the Quonset hut to finish the chair.

Jack looked at all of the pieces laid out "We need to go ahead and add another coat of stain then once it dries we can assemble it." He handed Lisa a paintbrush "ok." Jack opened up the can of stain "Did Katie enjoy going to Fairfield with you?" As she was brushing the stain on "yes, she likes seeing the babies play. I think I've got a few yearlings that are going to show potential for next racing season. I hope anyways." Jack glanced at her "good, I know how hard you work on your breeding program." "I do, I love seeing all the babies in the field and watching them grow." They made some more idle chit chat about Fairfield and Heartland. After a couple hours, they had all the pieces stained and closed the can of stain up. Lisa wrapped her arms around his waist "Another successful day of working on it. I'm going to be kinda sad when it's done." Jack looked down at her "why?" Lisa laughed at the look on his face "because it's been nice, JUST the two of us doing something together. I've enjoyed it because we haven't been interrupted." Jack wrapped his arms around her "well I have enjoyed that too. We don't get much time to ourselves that's for sure." He leaned down to kiss her "come on, let's go to the house. It should be dry by tomorrow and we can assemble it then."

They walked to the house, Lou had supper almost ready.

The next afternoon Lisa arrived at Heartland, Jack was on the porch enjoying a cup of coffee waiting for her to arrive. He greeted her at the bottom of the steps "hi." He gave her a kiss and led her up to the porch. "I'm glad you're here. Caleb sprung Ty from the hospital today. He's up in the loft resting." As she sat down "oh good, I'm glad he's home. I bet Amy's glad he's out of the hospital too." Jack held her hand "yes she is." They sat in silence for a few minutes enjoying the view from the porch. Lisa looked over "How about we go finish the chair and maybe go to my place for supper?" Jack stood up, pulling her with him "sounds like a plan."

It didn't take too long for them to finish the rocking chair, Lisa enjoyed not only helping hand Jack the pieces but watching him assemble it. He was so at ease working with his hands and she couldn't help but admire him as he worked. Jack senses she was staring "Lis, what's wrong?" She smiled "Nothing, I was just admiring my handsome husband." Jack smirked and stood up. He leaned down for their lips to meet. "Hmm, I love you." Lisa smiles back "I love you too. Now are we going to take this up to the loft now or wait until Amy has the baby?" Jack wiped the chair down one last time, "I think we can wait, surprise her with it when she has the baby."

The next day, everyone was preparing for Caleb and Cassandras wedding. Jack and Lisa were already at the church when Caleb let them know Amy had gone into labor and they were headed back to Heartland. They headed back to Heartland and from the barn office they could only wait. After a few hours Cassandra and Caleb arrived and soon they heard a baby cry. Jack wrapped his arms around Lisa holding her, kissing the top of her head as he held her.

It was the next day that Jack took the chair up to the loft and everyone gathered around Amy as they introduced Lyndy to the family. Amy handed Lyndy to Jack "the chair is perfect, thank you Grandpa and Lisa." Lisa smiled as she watched Jack with his new great granddaughter "you're welcome Amy. She is adorable."

They spent a little while with the newest family member before retreating back to the house. They settled on the couch with a cup of coffee. Lisa held his hand that was wrapped around her shoulders "We did good, that chair was perfect for them." Jack kissed the side of her head "we sure did. I'm glad we did it together, it meant so much to Amy but also to me that we had that time together too." Lisa smiled back at Jack "me too."

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Hope y'all enjoyed it. Thanks for all the reviews.


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